India's 2007 mission to the moon : Chandrayaan-1

The Chandrayaan-1 mission is India's first lunar spacecraft was announced by former Prime Minister Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayeeon on the Indian Independence Day, August 15, 2003.

Chandrayaan in sanskrit means "Voyage to the Moon".

In 1980, India became the eighth country to launch a satellite into orbit, after the USSR (1957), US (1958), France (1965), Japan (1970), China (1970), UK (1971), and the European Space Agency (1979), and before Israel (1988) and Iraq (1989).

The India Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will be responible for the mission.

The launch date of the moon probe is expected to be in 2007 or 2008.
Scientific payload: approx. 55 kg, out of 523 kg spacecraft in 100 x 100 km lunar orbit. Complete funding of the project has been assured by the Government of India.

U.S., Canada, Europe and Israel have submitted proposals for payloads to be flown on Chandrayaan-1, and these will compete with Indian-built payloads. G. Madhavan Nair, head of ISRO, stated that decisions will be based on scientific merit and whether they compliment Indian experiments.

Chandrayaan-1: Mission Definition and Goal
Chardrayaan-1 is the first Indian Mission to the Moon devoted to high-resolution remote sensing of the lunar surface features in visible, near infrared, X-ray and low energy gamma ray regions. This will be accomplished using several payloads already selected for the mission. In addition a total of about 10 kg payload weight and 10 W power are earmarked for proposals, which are now solicited. The mission is proposed to be a lunar polar orbiter at an altitude of about 100 km and is planned to be launched by 2007-2008 using indigenous spacecraft and launch vehicle of ISRO. The mission is expected to have an operational life of about 2 years.

Mission Objectives :
Carry out high resolution mapping of topographic features in 3D, distribution of various minerals and elemental chemical species including radioactive nuclides covering the entire lunar surface using a set of remote sensing payloads. The new set of data would help in unravelling mysteries about the origin and evolution of solar system in general and that of the moon in particular.

Realize the mission goal of harnessing the science payloads, lunar craft and the launch vehicle with suitable ground support system including DSN station, integration and testing, launching and achieving lunar orbit of ~100 km, in-orbit operation of experiments, communication/telecommand, telemetry data reception, quick look data and archival for scientific utilization by identified group of scientists.

Specific areas of study

High resolution mineralogical and chemical imaging of permanently shadowed north and south polar regions

Search for surface or sub-surface water-ice on the moon, specially at lunar pole

Identification of chemical end members of lunar high land rocks

Chemical stratigraphy of lunar crust by remote sensing of central upland of large lunar craters, South Pole Aitken Region (SPAR) etc., where interior material may be expected

To map the height variation of the lunar surface features along the satellite track

Observation of X-ray spectrum greater than 10 keV and stereographic coverage of most of the moon's surface with 5 m resolution, to provide new insights in understanding the moon's origin and evolution

Scientific payloads selected (so far)

Terrain Mapping stereo Camera (TMC) in the panchromatic band having 5m spatial resolution and 40 km swath, to prepare a high resolution atlas of moon

A Hyper Spectral Imager (HySI) operating in 400-900nm band with a spectral resolution of 15nm and spatial resolution of 80 m with a swath of 40 km, for mineralogical mapping

A Lunar Laser Ranging Instrument (LLRI), for determining accurate altitude of the spacecraft above the lunar surface for topographical mapping

A collimated Low Energy (0.5-10 keV) X-ray spectrometer (LEX) for measuring the fluorescent X-rays emanating from the lunar surface having ground spatial resolution of about 10 km, for elemental mapping of Si, Al, Mg,Ca, Fe,Ti

A Solar X-ray Monitor (SXM) in 2-10 keV energy range, for solar X-ray flux monitoring

A High Energy (10-200keV) X-ray/g-ray spectrometer (HEX) having a ground spatial resolution of approximately 20 km, for measuring 210Pb, 222Rn degassing, U, Th etc.

The spacecraft will be launched on a PSLV C5 (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota on the southeast coast of India in September of 2007 at the earliest.

The PSLV will inject Chandrayaan-1 into a 240 x 36000 km geosynchronous transfer orbit. After a 5.5 day lunar transfer trajectory the spacecraft will be captured into an initial 1000 km near circular orbit which will be lowered to a 200 km checkout orbit and finally into a 100 km circular polar orbit. It will stay in orbit and return data for at least two years.

Total cost of the mission is about $100 million U.S.(~50 times more in Indian Rupees)

India's proposed mission to the moon in 2007-8, Chanrdayaan-I will now have a component that will also land on the dusty surface of the moon. This is not an official landing mission, so the 25 kg cargo will be as an impactor.

''Echoes of the Chandrayaan lander impact will tell us a lot about the interior of the moon,'' says Manuel Grande, group leader, planets and magnetospheres group, at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in the UK, shortlisted for an experiment aboard Chandrayaan-1.

Essentially it will be dropped to the surface and ISRO will check if they can control how and where it lands on the surface. This is obviously a predecessor to future official landing missions.

‘‘I have great expectations,’’ says Paul Spudis, planetary scientist at the Johns Hopkins University’s Applied Physics Laboratory in Maryland (USA), which has been shortlisted too, for an experiment to map ice deposits at the poles of the moon. ‘‘Indian scientists, active in space science for years, are highly respected,’’ says Spudis. ‘‘The more data we get, the better.’’

‘‘This would be especially interesting if the mission overlaps the Japanese mission to place a seismometer on the surface,’’ says Grande, frequently in telecon with Bangalore scientists. ‘‘Chandrayaan-1 will carry new instrumentation, better than what has gone before.’’

:Indian Space Research Organisation was progressing well on the 'moon mission' and had completed the design of the spacecraft for the project.

One of the important ground element is the deep space tracking network. A huge antenna with about 34 metre diametres is being designed in the country"ISRO Chairman G Madhavan Nair has said.

The Indian space programme is on of the most advanced ons in the world. India has indegenously developed several satellite launchers :
external image

[Image scaled and linked to full size version: 1164 x 1005 ]

and has launched numerous satellites for india itself (view list) and for nations like France, Germany, South Africa, Chile, Israel, Cannada, Italy and Russia.

India are launching their own vesion of GPS called IRS in addition to taking active part in the Russian and European equivalents.

Here is a fabulous representation. Please view it

Here is a NASA representation :



This mission will be yet another feather in ISRO's cap of milestones

This is no surprise, as scientific and professional journals have long been packed with significant contributions by Indians. This has been quite disproportionate relative to the population, i.e., cannot be attributed simply to the numbers of Indians in the world. A higher percentage of Indians create significant new understanding, knowledge and technology. When computer technology companies want a competitive edge in productivity, they could go anywhere, but they most often choose India, even though there is IT overcapacity in other countries which offer greater incentives. India's competitive strength is creativity, quality and productivity per person.

Sources :
www.isro.org...
nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov...
www.skyrocket.de...
www.chandrayaan-1.com...
indicview.blogspot.com...
www.indianexpress.com...
www.geocities.com...
srirangan.net...

Also check out india's hypersonic airplane AVATAR, which will take mass space travel to the next level. It is to undertake its first flight in early 2007.



[edit on 22/5/05 by JAK]

GREAT post! This is a fantastic source of information for anyone concerned with space travel and developments on the return to the moon. Definitely going into favorites for later use.


Might I suggest one thing? Edit the first picture, it's too big.

Amazingly well done.

There's a mini spcae race on in Asia ppl..Not one thats been made public but still a race race nonetheless i suspect..
Who gets their orbiters to the moon first..Japan's already been there I think..

I think NASA,RSA etc. won't waste time building more probes to send to the moon... Whatever data they require on the lunar topology/composition for a suitable base camp for Mars missions may be directly acquired from these probes being sent by ISRO,JAXA,ESA etc..Thus making the Mars effort a truely global one where everyone's doing something pivotal and learning along the way..
Space exploration can only be achieved by cooperation henceforth... No more solo stunts.. the finance is just not available..

[edit on 23-5-2005 by Daedalus3]

Originally posted by Daedalus3
I think NASA,RSA etc. won't waste time building more probes to send to the moon...

If they were smart they would.

Space exploration can only be achieved by cooperation henceforth... No more solo stunts.. the finance is just not available..

Nor the desire. Nor the knowhow. Nor the man-power. Nor the resources. Nor the time. Nor the (fill in the blank).

[edit on 5/23/2005 by Amorymeltzer]

Indian Space Commission Chairman K. Madhavan Nair today said ISRO was in the process of clearing the payloads from the European Union (EU) and USA to piggyback ‘Chandrayan,’ the Rs 380-crore mission to probe the moon, scheduled for 2007.

With China expected to launch a similar probe in 2008, Mr Nair asserted that the country’s first moon probe project was on schedule and there was no cost overrun.

"Work on the production of instruments had already started and the design was complete. They were now looking at the deep space tracking network aspect", he said.

source...full article....

Locations in India where work on the Chandrayaan is taking place. Click here for large picture

Russia has also agreed to help India to construct space antennas and build electrical rocket engines needed for lunar missions.

Link

Scientific challenges of Chandrayaan 1 :

Good read : www.ias.ac.in...

Ain't gona happend in my time, and i'am young... They aren't advanced enough to even sedn a rocket in´the sky... Min be I'am wrong...

Originally posted by Figher Master FIN
They aren't advanced enough to even sedn a rocket in´the sky... Min be I'am wrong...

You sure are you sure are

A robotic arm sent to the moon to do some sample analysis is what Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is thinking of.

The project, according to Nair, will cost around Rs 10-15 billion. That is almost three to four times the expense of the `Chandrayaan-1' mission to moon project, which Isro has slated for 2007-08. "But it is possible. We will need the support of the scientific community and the government," Nair says.

ISRO's cost-effective space exploration projects have come in for praise even from overseas. "I am amazed at the low cost operations of Isro. For a mission to the moon project, US-based National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) spends around $12.5 billion. Isro does it for less than $one billion," says a Nasa observer.

link

Originally posted by Figher Master FIN
Ain't gona happend in my time, and i'am young... They aren't advanced enough to even sedn a rocket in´the sky... Min be I'am wrong...

explain ....

Originally posted by Figher Master FIN
Ain't gona happend in my time, and i'am young... They aren't advanced enough to even sedn a rocket in´the sky... Min be I'am wrong...

Check out the Indian Space programs milestones.
Seems they've sent a number of Rockets into space.
ISRO

hmm...new article ..

22/11/05
Indian space agency plans first lunar mission


India’s national space agency (ISRO) has announced that the country’s first lunar mission is on track after construction began on a $22 million deep space tracking centre near Bangalore earlier this month.
Under the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Chandrayaan-I mission, the satellite will be launched on one of its PSLV rockets in late 2007. The ISRO has eight satellites in operation providing more than 150 communication transponders but this will be the first time that India launches to outside the Earth’s orbit.

A 32m (105ft) diameter antenna and ground control centre for controlling and tracking the satellite will be housed at the new site. This will be capable of receiving data from the satellite orbiting the Moon.

All preliminary design for the satellite has been completed and the configuration has been finalised. It will follow a polar orbit of the Moon for its two-year lifespan, mapping the lunar surface.

The satellite will have a launch weight of 1,300kg (2,900lb) reducing to 520kg in orbit. It will carry a terrain mapping camera along with laser mapping instruments and an impactor which will detach and hit the lunar surface.

The satellite will also carry three instruments for the European Space Agency (ESA), and an instrument for the Bulgarian agency.
S Krishnamurthy, a director at the ISRO, says: “Everything is progressing as planned for a launch in late 2007. We already had most of the technology needed for this launch so the incremental cost of undertaking this mission was not very great.

“We have a large scientific community involved in the industry and this project has provided some new challenges for them, with the developments from this feeding into our remote satellites.”

Article >>

[edit on 30-11-2005 by Stealth Spy]

MOSCOW, December 6 (RIA Novosti) - The heads of the Russian and Indian space agencies have discussed the possibility of Russian enterprises participating in India's lunar exploration program, a spokesman for the Russian Federal Space Agency said Tuesday.

Vyacheslav Davidenko said, "During their meeting in Moscow, Head of the Russian Space Agency Anatoly Perminov and Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organization Madhavan Nair discussed possibilities for Russian space enterprises to take part in Indian lunar exploration program Chandrayaan 2."

The Russian Space Agency proposed to consider the production of small spacecraft to train students. The parties also discussed other joint space projects.

en.rian.ru...

US backs India’s space mission to the moon

Friday March 03, 2006, NEW DELHI: The United States on Thursday offered its support to India’s unmanned mission to the moon which New Delhi has scheduled for next year or early 2008, a joint statement said.
The endorsement came after delegation-level talks on the sidelines of a summit between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and US President George W Bush. The statement pledged American support for plans for an unmanned lunar mission by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

“President Bush and Prime Minister Singh welcomed the inclusion of two US instruments in the Indian lunar mission Chandrayaan-1” (Moon Vehicle), it said, referring to the Indian orbiter which is under development. “They noted that a memorandum of understanding to be signed by ISRO and NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) would be significant steps forward in this area,” said the statement at the end of landmark talks in New Delhi. ISRO has said that its maiden lunar programme is on schedule and could be launched as early as 2007 and followed by a manned mission within seven years.

The 590-kilogramme orbiter is to map the lunar terrain for minerals, conduct experiments and land a probe weighing about 20 kilogrammes on the surface for closer scientific examination.

A ground station is also being built near the southern city of Bangalore where ISRO is headquartered, to track an indigenously-built polar satellite launch vehicle which will carry the orbiter.

The mission is budgeted to cost the state-run agency $83 million. India sent its first astronaut, Rakesh Sharma, to space aboard in April 1984. Another astronaut, Kalpana Chawla, was killed along with six others in the Columbia shuttle disaster in February 2003.

Full Article >>

Indian launchers will now launch US satellites

India could emerge as a global satellite launch hub with President Bush giving the nod to allow satellites with American components to be launched by Indian rockets.

A joint statement by Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said they had committed to permit US satellites to be launched in India opening up new opportunities for commercial space cooperation between the two countries. In 2004, American satellite firm Boeing had explored with Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to jointly build and market two tonne satellites that would be launched from the Satish Dhawan spaceport in Sriharikota. But, Boeing backed off citing lack of market opportunities and tight US control norms that hindered the deal. "This would allow India to gain a bigger share in global satellite market at competitive terms," former Space Commission chief Prof U R Rao told DNA.

"It is a step forward and a win-win situation for both the nations. The Boeing contract did not work out due to the US International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) act. Now, they can come back and also other American satellite firms," Space commission member Prof Roddam Narasimha said.

Boosted by the low-cost high quality space programme, ISRO is aiming to capture about 10% of the global satellite launch market over the next five years.

Bush and Singh welcomed the U.S. Department of Commerce's plan to exempt items that would require an export license to end-users in India. Among the beneficiaries would be ISRO, which can source components for satellites from the US freely.

American payload for the Chandrayaan confirmed

The Bush visit will also see the signing of the pact to carry two American scientific instruments in India's moon mission Chandrayan-1.

The US plans to put a synthetic aperture radar that can map the moon's terrain despite hostile atmosphere and a hyper spectral imaging camera for high resolution pictures of specific areas, aboard India's moon craft.

Chandrayan-1 involves sending a satellite weighing 525 kg on a polar orbit 100 kms above the moon with a lifespan of 2 years. The mission to be launched by 2007 is intended to develop a chemical map of the moon, with three-dimensional atlas of specific regions of high interest.

Full Article >>

[edit on 3-3-2006 by Stealth Spy]

Originally posted by Figher Master FIN
Ain't gona happend in my time, and i'am young... They aren't advanced enough to even sedn a rocket in´the sky... Min be I'am wrong...

Hmm...

Another great Stealth Spy post

I would have been surprised though if there was not any technical assistance from the Russians, as they would seem to be an obvious choice considering the dependence on Russian avionics, past cooperation etc etc...

Still great stuff though!

Q

Originally posted by Qoelet

Originally posted by Figher Master FIN
Ain't gona happend in my time, and i'am young... They aren't advanced enough to even sedn a rocket in´the sky... Min be I'am wrong...

Hmm...

Another great Stealth Spy post

I would have been surprised though if there was not any technical assistance from the Russians, as they would seem to be an obvious choice considering the dependence on Russian avionics, past cooperation etc etc...

Still great stuff though!

Q

Stealth- Great stuff! Where d'ya get the time to go into such detail?

And then we have some worthies such as Fighter Master who don't wanna read and brush up their knowledge before posting their comments here!

And Qoelet, I would like to mention that no country produces EVERYTHING indigenously. For eg., many of the parts for the Boeng aircraft are manufactured IN INDIA. So whats the big deal if some parts of India's Chandrayan is outsourced from Russia?
And where has the software for running British Rail come from? INDIA!
And who is the world leader in Remote Sensing technology? INDIA. It provides satellite photographs to US of A, Germany, France, UK, etc.

And this ignoramus, the Fighter Master, may not know that these satellites are totally Indian, and put into orbit by their own rockets.

So little fella, please brush up your knowledge before posting nonsensical comments on this board.



[edit on 5-3-2006 by mikesingh]

I'm curious about the moon expedition but from another angle.
What if the Indian space probe, circling the far side of the moon, manages to take photographs of the so-called 'moon cities' that NASA and the US government has kept under wraps??

WOW! This could blow the lid off the most secretly kept conspiracy in history. Needless to say, this would open a can of worms.

But is India too a secret signatory to this moon/alien conspiracy?

That is, if there are such things as 'moon cities' and aliens in the first place!

[edit on 5-3-2006 by mikesingh]

Originally posted by Stealth Spy
With China expected to launch a similar probe in 2008, Mr Nair asserted that the country’s first moon probe project was on schedule and there was no cost overrun.

I guess you can't trust the officials


Interesting.

India planned to launch it in 2007 but it has been postponed and it has yet to be launched and its 2008


China planned the mission to launch in 2008 but it launched it in 2007.



It just kind of shows where the development of each respective space organisations are at. One can build it on or before schedule while another is always over budget and over the time frame given